Machines for operating upon shoe soles



Aug. 15, 1961 H. R. RUHR ETAL MACHINES FOR OPERATING UPON SHOE SOLES 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 8, 1960 nvenii* Anton Mah/bach Heinrich R. Ruhr ug- 15, 1961 H. R. RUHR ET AL 2,995,764

MACHINES FOR OPERATING UPON SHOE SOLES Filed April 8, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheecl 2 United States 2,995,764 Patented Aug. l5, 1961 MACHINES FOR OPERATING UPON SHGE SOLES Heinrich R. Ruhr and Anton Mhlbach, Frankfurt am Main, Germany, assignors to- United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Boston, Mass., a corporation Filed Apr. 8, 1960, Ser. No. 21,047 Claims priority, application Germany May 20, 1959 11 Claims. (Cl. 12-88) This invention relates to shoe machinery and more particularly to machines for perform-ing operations, such as edge setting or edge trimming, on the periphery of unatt-ached soles. A machine for performing peripheral sole operations is shown in United States Letters Patent No. 2,459,179, granted January 18, 1949, on an application of Eugene l. Ray. The Ray machine includes a horizontal work table which supports an unattached sole, a rotary tool, such as an edge trimmer or edge setting wheel and a stationary edge guide. The soles are automatically urged against the edge guide and fed past the tool by a feed wheel which rotates about a substantially horizontal axis slightly above the table. The feed wheel, as seen in the Ray patent, has a relatively broad convex curvature (measured axially) in order to engage the sole at all times. This is required because the edge of the sole, which has a continually varying contour, is at lall times moving in and out .relatively to any fixed point between the cutter and the edge gage. Consequently, the sole must be engaged by the feed wheel at constantly varying distances relatively to its edge while it is operated upon.

With most soles this has not heretofore presented a problem, however, with shoes having soles with extremely pointed toes considerable diiiiculty is experienced. When the radius of the shoe toe is extremely small, the convex curvature of the feed wheel does not engage the sole close to the margin but rather at a point inwardly or heelwardly of the center about which the toe radius is formed. When the sole is engaged Iin this manner, it cannot turn -about the center of curvature of the toe or toe radius but rather swings about a far greater radius, consequently, the sole is improperly urged against the tool. The effect is that the sole is forced against the tool along the side first presented but remains untouched by the tool on the subsequently presented side.

An object of this invention is to provide a machine of the class described having feeding means for engaging the sole uniformly spaced from its edge and particularly at the center of curvature of the toe.

Another object is to provide a machine of the class described in which a uniform work operation takes place evenly about the entire margin of the sole without appreciable extra Work being required of the operator at any point.

In accordance with these objects and as a feature of the invention applicants have found that by providing a feed wheel having a plurality of stepped or progressively decreasing work engaging diameters measured axially of the feed wheel the sole will be substantially uniformly engaged a-t all times thereby insuring continuous even feeding. The axial distance between the work engaging diameters is selected so that the sole is engaged directly on the upper face of the sole margin as distinguished from the edge and fed without interruption regardless of the relative position of the sole to the feeding and operating instrumentalities. When the convex portions of the sole are operated on by the tool, the sole is engaged and fed by a wheel of one diameter, and when the concave portions are operated upon a wheel of smaller diameter lautomatically takes over.

As another feature of the invention, the edge gage or guide as it is sometimes called, is mounted yieldably in the machine and is spring-based toward the feed Wheel in such manner that as soon as the toe end of the sole approaches the rotary tool the sole is automatically moved to a position whereupon the feed wheel engages the sole substantially at the center of curvature to obtain the requisite turning movement. By Ksuch provision it is usually only necessary to employ a feed wheel having two work engaging diameters. The larger diameter wheel or portion, as it is also called, engages the sole at the toe end at a point which is on the radius or center of curvature of the toe contour or at a point which is outward thereof as distinguished from inwardly of this point. By so engaging the sole at the center of curvature, rotation takes place about this point and all portions of the toe contour are uniformly presented to the rotary tool. Subsequently, the gage is moved back into its original position during which time the remaining portions of the edge are acted upon by the tool.

The above and other features of the invention including various novel details of construction and combinations of parts will now be more particularly described with reference to the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the claims. It will be understood that the particular machine shown embodying the invention is by way of illustration only and not as a limitation of the invention. The principles and features of this invention may be employed in varied and numerous embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention.

In the drawings,

FIG. 1 is a plan view of an edge trimming machine embodying the invention with the cutter beginning to operate upon a concave portion of the side of the sole in the inner shank area and with the smaller step of the feed wheel in engagement with the sole;

FIG. 2. is a view similar to FIG. 1 showing the cutter operating upon the toe portion of the sole and with the edge gage in its advanced position with the larger step of the feed wheel acting on the sole; and

FIG. 3 is a sectional View taken along the line III- III of FIG. 2.

The operating instrumentalities are similar to those disclosed in the above-identified patent to Ray and comprise a rotary tool 2 in the form of a trimming cutter for which there may be substituted a grinding wheel or an edge setter. The cutter rotates in a clockwise direction about a substantially vertical axis as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Unattached soles are supported on a horizontal work table 4 and presented to the cutter by a rotary driven feed wheel 6. The feed wheel is mounted on a drive shaft 8 which is supported in a housing (not shown) and is spring biased downwardly toward the work table 4, the shaft and its housing being pivotal about a horizontal axis also not shown but located to the right-hand side of FIG. 3 as in the Ray machine. The feed wheel 6 comprises an inner work engaging wheel portion 10 of large diameter and an outer wheel portion 12 of smaller diameter. These wheel portions, or steps as they may also be called, are co-axial and are separated by an appropriately necked portion 14. The direction of rotation of the feed wheel and of the rotary tool are indicated by arrows in the figures.

In prior machines the feed wheel is assisted by a stationary edge guide or gage but in the instant invention a movable edge gage 16 is provided. The edge gage, as seen in FIG. 3, extends slightly above the upper horizontal surface of the work table 4 and, as seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, is of somewhat irregular coniguration. Its major portion is uniformly convex or circular and is provided with a nose-like projection 18, one side of which is concave, as shown at 20. [Depending from the edge gage 16 is a pin 22 to which there is attached a lever 24. The lever 24 is pivotally secured to the bottom of the Work swung.

table 4 by a fulcrum 26 and has an arm 28 extending away from the portion attached to the pin 22. Adjustable screws Sil and 32 are threaded respectively in bosses 34, 3,6 below the work table 4. The armr 28 of the lever 24 is free to move between the ends of the screws. 30 and 32 the extent of its movement, of course, being controlled by the amount the screws are advanced in their respective bosses. A tension spring 38 is stretched between the lower end of the pin 22 and a pin 40 secured to the work table. Ihe spring 38 tends to urge the lever 24 in a counterclockwise direction about the fulcrum 26.

The machine operates in the following manner. It does not differ fundamentally from the operation of the above-identified Ray machine wherein a loose sole S is placed upon the work tabler4, with the inner shank portion midway between toe and heel located beneath the rotatingy feed, wheel 6 which is raised by a treadle (not shown). Upon release of the treadle, the feed wheel 6 is lowered and the outer or smaller feed wheel portion 12 engages the sole adjacent its edge, the work engaging part of the larger portion 1t) of the feed wheel being located outwardly of the edge of thesolek and hence being ineffective at this` time. Thesole is fed by the smaller feed wheel portion against the edge gage 16 which by virtue of the force. appliedgto it by the sole occupies the positionshown in FIG. l, the lever 24 being moved in a clockwise direction against the action of the spring 38 about the fulcrum 26.to a portion in which the arm 28` is in engagement with the screw 32. The sole movesto the left, as viewed in FIG. l, the, feed wheel moving it intoengagernent with the working periphery of the rotary tool V2. The sole moves past the edge gage and working` tool in the direction shown by the arrows. As. the heel portion approaches the feed wheel, the convex edge of the sole gradually moves between the. gage 16 and. tool 2. closer to aline between their centers. Consequently, the sole gradually moves under and is engaged by the larger diameter wheel portion in acontinuous. movement. The wheel portion 10 feeds all convex portions of the soleV past the cutter including the heel, as well as, the relatively straight side of the sole opposite the concave inner shank.

AsV the toe moves past the edge gage 16, the pressure applied to the gage diminishes and the spring 38 moves the gageY from the FIG. l position to the FIG. 2 position in which the arm 28 engages the adjustable screw 30. Bythis movement the nose-like. projection 18 is in position so that its inner or concave surface 20 moves and positions the toeA in such manner that the larger diameter wheel portion 10V engages the toe substantially at the center of curvature `C about which the toel radius R is It will be obvious from FIG. 2 that if it were not for the presence of the larger diameter wheel portion 10 or the movement of the gage 16, the sole would have been engaged by the smaller diameter wheel portion 12 at a point D which is substantially more heelward than the point C. If the sole were swung about point D, the two sides of the toe would be operated upon unevenlyV by the rotary tool 2. This would tend to blunt the toe severely if the rotary tool 2 were a trimming cutter. Had the sole been permitted to swing completely about this inner point D, the left-hand side of the toe, as viewed in FIG. 2, would be over trimmed and the right-hand side would have swung away from engagement with the wheel and not have been operated upon at all. By swinging the sole substantially about point C or nearer to the edge, this problem is eliminated.

After the toe has swung about the center of curvature C, the right-hand side of the sole is again firmly pressed against the edge gage 16 which overcomes the force of the spring 38 causing the edge gage to return to its FIG. l position and the operation returns to normal.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A machine for operating on unattached shoe soles having, in combination, a work table, a rotary operating tool, an edge gage, and a driven feed Wheel with work engaging wheel portions of different diameters.

2. A machine for operating ton unattached shoe soles having, in combination, a Work table, a rotary operating tool, an edge gage, and a driven feed wheel having two work engaging portions of different diameters, said portions being spaced axially from each other.v

3. A machine for loperating on unattachedY shoe soles having, in combination, a work table, a rotary operating tool, an edge gage, and a driven feed wheel having two work engaging portions of diiferent diameters, the smaller portion being located farther from the edge gage than the larger portion.

4. A machine for operating on unattached shoe soles having, in combination, a work table, a rotary operating tool, an edge gage, and a driven feed wheel having two work engaging portions of different diameters, the smaller portion being engageable with a sole when its concave edges are between the operating tolol and the edge gage and the larger portion being engageable when convex portions are between the tool and the gage.

5. A machine for operating on unattached shoe soles having, in combination, a work table, a rotary operating tool, a driven feed wheel, a gage engageable with the edge of a sole, and means for mounting the gage for yielding movement toward and away from the feed wheel depending upon the portion of the sole being operated on.

6. A machine for operating on unattached shoe soles having, in combination, a work table, a rotary operating tool, a driven feed wheel, a gage engageable with the edge of a sole, a lever mounting the gage for yielding movement toward and away from the feed wheel depending upon the portion of the sole being operated on and ad; justable means for controlling the amount of movement of the gage.

7. A machine for operating on unattached shoe sole: having, in combination, a Work table, a rotary operating tool, an edge gage, a feed wheel engageable with the sole for moving it past the edge gage and the tool, said edge gage having a substantially uniform convex surface engageable with most of the periphery of the moving sole and a projection engageable With the toe portion of the sole only.

8. A machine for operating on unattached shoe soles having, in combination, a work table, a rotary operating tool, an edge gage, a feed wheel engageable with the sole for moving it past the edge gage and the tool, said edge gage having a substant-ially uniform convex surface engageable with most of the periphery of the moving sole and a projection engageable with the toe portion of the sole only, and means for moving the gage `only when the gage engages the toe portion of the sole to move the sole to a position wherein the feed wheel engages the sole sub stantially at the center of curvature of the toe.

9. A machine for operating on unattached shoe sole: having, in combination, a work table, a rotary operating tool, a driven feed wheel having two work engaging por tions of diiferent diameters, said port-ions being space( axially from each other, a gage engageable with the edg of a sole, and means for mounting the gage for yielding movement toward and away from the feedwheel depend ing upon the portion of the sole being operated on.

10. A machine for operating on unat-tached shoe sole.I having, in combination, a work table, a rotary opearting tool, an edge gage, and a driven feed wheel having tw( work engaging portions of different diameters for moving the sole past the edge gage and the tool, the smaller por tion being located farther from the edgeV gage. than tht portion of larger diameter, said edge gage having a sub stantially uniform convex surface engageable with mos of the periphery of the moving sole and a projection en gageablewith the toe portion of the soleonlyr l1. A machine for operating on unattached shoesole;

having, in combination, a work table, a rotary operating tool, an edge gage, and ra driven feed wheel having two work engaging portions of diierent diameters for moving the sole past the edge gage and tool, the smaller portion being engageable with a sole when its concave edges are between the operating tool and `the larger portion being engageable when convex portions are between the tool and the gage, the edge gage having a substantially uniform convex surface engageable with most of the periphery of the moving soie and a projection engageabie with the toe portion of the sole only, and means for moving the gage and eective only when the gage engages the toe portion to move the sole to a position wherein the feed wheel engages it substantially at the center of curvature of the toe,

No references cited. 

